


What's in a scent

by Emmuzka



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, M/M, Scenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-26
Updated: 2015-06-26
Packaged: 2018-04-06 07:42:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4213584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emmuzka/pseuds/Emmuzka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sidney Crosby smells like sex and candy, Tyler Seguin smells like nothing and Patrick Kane is a crazy cat lady.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What's in a scent

**Author's Note:**

> In a A/B/O world, how would scenting and smelling work, and what if it would go whack?
> 
> Based on a prompt in the Sin Bin community.

Sidney smells like caramel and sex. He smells like the best buttery caramel you have ever tasted, or even better, he smells like the idea of it, like something elusive that you would hardly find anywhere in the real world. Sidney smells like sex, a combination of fresh and dirty, heat and flesh.

Sidney passes him in the locker room and he lets himself follow the amazing scent that surrounds the man. But just a little, only for one extra inhale and a miniscule turning of his head to follow Sid. Because it's not right. Sniffing after omegas is fucking rude. You just can't do that, then he would be almost like those disgusting alphas that grab asses or expose their junk to unwilling omegas to see. He has a mother and an omega brother to think of, and he would never ever degrade Sidney like that, sniffing after him like a dog.

But it's just so good. He closes his eyes for a second, savoring the last whiff of scented air. How can the others just do what they do without dropping everything when Sidney walks by? He conducts a letter in his mind. _Dear Abby, I have an omega team mate that smells really good. It's so good that I wonder why other people don't act like they're been hit by a bomb when he walks by. I would like to know if I'm the only one effected like so, or are they just better at hiding it, but I don't dare to ask. Should I ask, or would it be better to leave the whole thing alone?_

Maybe it's a good thing that they don't sit side by side. He can live with this. A small illicit thrill that makes his day a bit better, without a temptation too big to resist. 

Sidney turns to him. Not even to him, but to his general direction, just enough for him to trace Sid's scent again. And there it is, the intoxicating scent. For Christ sake, this is perverse. 

Then the scent is gone again and he closes his eyes after it, trying to focus. 

When he opens them again, it's to look straight in the eyes of the new guy. The new alpha. He looks at him like he could read his mind. So, yeah. The question answered. He's not the only one. 

***

Tyler doesn't smell like anything. It's not him keeping extra clean, or being really unobtrusive beta, or even sampling the new scent dampeners that have finally been approved for over-the-counter sale. To Jaimie’s nose, he just doesn't smell. 

Despite the oddness of it, it doesn't feel uncomfortable for Jamie, though. Actually it's quite nice, to not have to meet one's personal scent so prominently. Jamie had always felt that smelling people was taxing, especially those unknown to him, or those with prominent scents.

It's just odd. To Jamie, Tyler isn't surrounded by a void of smell, it's just that there is nothing distinctive, or really nothing at all. But it's not like Jamie would ask about it, and no-one acts like it would be a thing, so. 

Jamie is roused from his thoughts by Jordie, who had walked past them but then just stopped, like he'd walked into a wall. 

"What?"

Jordie turns to them and takes Jamie by his shoulders, pushing his nose to Jamie's neck.

"What?!" That's just rude, even coming from his own brother. It’s a locker room and there the rules a bit different because everyone is living in each other’s scent spaces, but still.

Jordie doesn’t answer but dismisses Jamie to take a hold of Tyler and do the same whiffing, which is even ruder, Jamie thinks.

Tyler just lets him and waits for an explanation.

Eventually Jordie takes a step backwards. Jamie keeps quiet, hoping that his silence will urge Jordie to explain himself quicker and end the situation before the other guys take notice.

"You two... You smell the same. You smell exactly the same."

"What? No we don't." Smelling the same would be just ridiculous. It used to be something that you heard in old fairytales or trashy romance books. Now it's more something for compatibility fetish sites and threesome porn, not for real life. Your scent is supposed to appeal to your partner and friends with its familiarity, not to actually be so familiar it’s the same.

Jordie doesn't look the slightest convinced by Jamie's denial. Instead, Jordie turns back to Tyler. "How does Jamie smell like you?"

"Like, uhh..." Sometimes people's scents are hard to describe, but should Tyler come up with at least something?

"…He smells a bit like you?" 

Jordie nods at him, like for a confirmation. "A good try. So. A perfect compatibility. I want to be there when you tell our mother."

"Jordie!" Jamie hisses, but he's already letting it go. Because wow. That’s just, wow. He feels a blush spread down his neck. How had they never realized it? 

Tyler smiles at him, shyly. Jamie feels himself smile back. A perfect match. 

***

Patrick showers twice a day. He keeps changing his clothes and wears a ridiculous amount of scent absorbers. He also avoids parks and other open spaces and checks beforehand when he visits new people’s houses, and he definitely doesn't participate in any charity calendars, because. Because yeah, it’s kinda ridiculous.

All the guys know what’s up, and they’re okay with it, not thinking that he’s some kind of perv, but they chirp at him about it. There is only so many times one can take being pronounced to smell like tuna before something drastic happens.

The bar they go after the game is seedier than what they normally prefer, but Patrick goes along with it. As long as there is no potential for rats, it’s okay. (And shut up about his future career as a health inspector, okay?) 

He’s had two beers when a girl comes in with a stupid purse dog. Who the hell drags a dog to a bar in an evening? 

Jonny notices the little thing before Patrick does, but even he isn’t quick enough to go to the owner and catch the pooch before it gets loose from its carriage bag. Three seconds and the dog is humping Patrick’s leg.

He goes to snatch it away, but then what? Patrick holds the dog, awkwardly holding it away from his body. It looks like it’s in thrones of rapture. If dogs even can be that ecstatic, Patrick doesn’t know. 

The dog’s owner comes to relieve him, first amused but then, when the dog would much rather stay with Patrick, with dismay. When she realizes exactly how much the dog wants to smell him out, her face turns down in disgust. She starts to say something, but the music is loud and Jonny grabs her arm, escorting her and the pooch away.

Patrick shrugs at the guys and tries to relax again. In the corner of his eye he can see Sharpy looking at him with sympathy. 

Patrick knows that he’s the reason Madelyn and Sadie don’t have any pets, and why Jonny gave his yorkie away. For some reason, animals think that Patrick smells really good. Scent signals shouldn’t cross species, but that information doesn’t really help when it feels like every living creature is out there, on varying levels, to get him. Patrick supposes he’s lucky that his weird as shit animal magnetism doesn’t work on insects. 

They don’t talk about it, but it’s hard to ignore when every dog, cat, rabbit, rodent and bird reacts to him. Cats are okay, Patrick thinks. They have a good rapport. Dogs are annoying and embarrassing, and pigeons are scary and downright disgusting. 

Overall, it’s a shitty situation. Every time he meets a new person, at some point the animal thing comes up, and after that it’s _wow, the animals really love you_ and then _uh, do you really *love* animals, too?_ And usually it’s the end of that. 

Patrick drinks his beer and tries not to feel bitter about it. He hasn’t done anything wrong, it’s not like he’d willingly scent signal to _animals,_ for Christ sake. 

After a while, when Patrick thinks that everything had gone back to normal again, the guys in front of him fall silent, one at a time. And they start to follow something behind Patrick’s back. He turns to see a large brown striped cat behind him, with maybe half a dozen kittens with her. She just looks at him, all polite. 

Patrick scratches the cat behind her ears. “I knew there was a reason for no rats in here.” 

The kittens take it as a permission to crawl all over him. It’s nice. Cats are always nice, it feels like they have a mutual understanding of things.

Then Jonny comes to the table with new beers and soda for the baby rookie and elbows the news guys to stop staring. Patrick sets one of the kittens on his knee and takes a swing. He can live with this.


End file.
